Darcy Lowman-Craig has four chickens in her Sioux Falls backyard that require less care than her two house cats.

She ordered the chickens online and got them in May, after convincing her husband it was a good idea for their family of five to have fresh eggs and to teach their kids where food comes from.

Urban agriculture is a national trend. In Sioux Falls, a task force has been working since March to create guidelines for residents who want to keep chickens, goats or bees, among other things. The next meeting is today, and in December the City Council’s Land Use Committee will vote on its recommendations. The City Council will look at the ordinance early next year.

“It’s always better to have guidelines,” Lowman-Craig said. “If you have somebody trying to keep too many or not taking proper care (of the animals), it becomes a problem and reflects badly on the rest of us ... makes it harder for us. That way you don’t have to worry about somebody cramming 50 chickens into a suburban backyard and then it gets blown out of proportion to no chickens anywhere.”

Wyatt Urlacher, a member of the task force, said he wishes more animals were allowed within city limits but overall was pleased with the direction of the recommendation.

“We’ve taken what people want and came up with sensible solutions that work for everybody,” Urlacher said.

Here’s a breakdown of what the proposed ordinance for animals and fowl — which could be amended, changed or voted down by the City Council — includes:

■ It proposes definitions for domestic animal, nondomestic animal, exotic animal, fowl, livestock and pet. The task force hasn’t proposed changes to limiting the number of domestic pets to four.

■ People can keep up to six chickens or rabbits.

■ Having more than six would require a license obtained after 80 percent of property owners within 100 feet sign a petition that outlines plans. The same process would be used for other fowl, such as ducks, geese and turkeys.

■ Livestock — including swine, cattle, cows, sheep, horses, mules and goats, would only be allowed in districts zoned for agriculture.

(Page 2 of 2)

■ Roosters would be prohibited.

■ Slaughtering animals in city limits would be prohibited.

■ Exotic animals would be prohibited.

■ Enclosures for fowl would require 25-foot setbacks from dwellings on adjacent lots.

The point of the proposed ordinance is to allow small animals that have a minimal effect on neighbors, task force member Pat Herman, who serves as an opponent, said.

“I could understand, somebody doesn’t want a cow next door, or a llama,” she said. “I don’t think anybody having six chickens next to them would have any impact on their lives, no noise issue, smell issue — the two biggest impacts from having animals.”

Task force member and Councilor Rex Rolfing hopes the ordinance accommodates both sides. Tim Olsen, another task force member, hopes the parameters help people to be good neighbors.

Councilor Dean Karsky, a task force member, agrees. Neighbor concerns is part of why the task force has proposed prohibiting slaughtering animals in city limits and also prohibiting roosters because of the noise.

“That’s the whole point of the urban ag committee ... is when you live in a neighborhood, what can you expect to see?” Karsky said. “Do you expect neighbors to be slaughtering animals in the backyard or garage, or have 20 chickens wandering around in the backyard? There’s a whole reasonableness standard.”

Lowman-Craig’s neighbors have been welcoming of her chickens — even during an escape attempt by one that took her through the neighborhood for about an hour until she caught it.

“I was knocking on doors, saying, ‘Can I go in your backyard? My chicken escaped,’ ” she said. “They looked at me like I was crazy but pulled in dogs so I didn’t have an issue, and a bunch of kids came up and met the chicken when I caught her.”

One neighbor told Lowman-Craig the four chickens — which are kept in a coop — are less disruptive than a nearby dog.

The task force has not talked about grandfathering any residents in for the new ordinance, if it’s approved by the City Council. Members have tried to take much of the public input into consideration and also modeled the proposed ordinance after what’s been done in other cities across the country.

“It’s going to be one of those things, we know we’re not going to make everybody happy,” Karsky said. “We’ve still got to balance what’s best for the entire community within what we’re doing.”